April 14, 2003 Nightly News 

TOM BROKAW, anchor: The major combat may be over in Iraq, but here at home the battle over patriotism and protest goes on. America's original patriots were protesters, but in today's superheated media climate, that's a distinction often lost on the airwaves, especially on radio. NBC's Anne Thompson tonight on the selling of patriotism and protest on your AM and FM dial.

ANNE THOMPSON reporting: Every morning, Magic 95 wakes up Fort Wayne, Indiana, like this.

Unidentified Radio Deejay: (On radio) Today, it's David Scrag's second-period US history class.

Class: (In unison, on radio) I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

THOMPSON: Part of program director Barb Richard's strategy to hold onto listeners since troops poured into the Persian Gulf.

Ms. BARB RICHARD: Our focus isn't really anti-war or pro-war. It's patriotism. It's red, white, and blue.

THOMPSON: Her guide: radio consultant Mike McVey's war manual.

Mr. MIKE McVEY: We are not saying, 'You should come on air and say we wholeheartedly endorse the war.' Our position is, we're Americans. Endorse America.

THOMPSON: The goal, he says, is to reflect the emotions of the station's listeners, and polls show Americans overwhelmingly support this war. That's why a month after their lead singer criticized President Bush, the Dixie Chicks still aren't heard much on radio. Sean Ross is tracking the controversy.

Mr. SEAN ROSS: At one point literally half of the stations that report to our country chart had stopped playing any Dixie Chicks music whatsoever.

THOMPSON: The Chicks' hit, "Traveling Soldier" went from number one to oblivion in two weeks. Replacing it: Darryl Worley's "Have You Forgotten?" a pro-war song. But supporting the war effort is not without controversy. Texas-based radio giant Clear Channel is getting slammed. Critics, including New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, accuse it of using rallies for America, organized by one of its talk show hosts, to influence policy and strengthen already close ties to the Bush administration. In a statement to NBC News, Clear Channel says its corporate offices are not directly involved. And that only 1 percent of its 1200-plus stations have participated.

For those who remember the anti-war songs that dominated the FM dial at the end of Vietnam, it may seem radio has changed its colors. But one network has stayed the same and is benefiting from its anti-war message.

Unidentified Radio Talk Show Host: This is Pacifica's Peace.

THOMPSON: Pacifica Radio is dedicated to peace. Listener--supported, it completed its most successful fundraising drive ever just before the war started.

Mr. DAN COUGHLIN (Pacifica Radio Network Executive Director): Pacifica is looking at its revenues growing by a third over the--over the--this period of the war.

THOMPSON: Radio, defining patriotism in different ways for different listeners. Anne Thompson, NBC News, New York.

March 31, 2004 Nightly News:

TOM BROKAW, anchor: And a talkative band of liberals helps to give Kerry a boost this fall on their new radio network, their answer to conservative talk radio, which, of course, dominates the air waves. As NBC's Carl Quintanilla reports, it's a modest enterprise but with a big ambition.

CARL QUINTANILLA reporting: They say they're angry, disaffected, and starting today they were on the air.

Mr. AL FRANKEN: Welcome to The O'Franken Factor.

QUINTANILLA: Comedian Al Franken and others, part of a new liberal talk-radio network called Air America, taking aim at conservatives like Bill O'Reilly and Rush Limbaugh.

Mr. FRANKEN: Hello, friends. I am the Rush-bo, Rush Limbaugh.

QUINTANILLA: Highlighting the political media tug of war in this country that sometimes turns nasty.

(Beginning of clip from C-SPAN)

Mr. BILL O'REILLY: Shut up.

Mr. FRANKEN: No, you shut up.

Mr. O'REILLY: You had your 35 minutes. Shut up.

Mr. FRANKEN: This isn't your show, Bill.

Mr. O'REILLY: This is what this guy does.

(End of clip)

Mr. FRANKEN: There's no question in my mind that this is the best thing I can do to rally troops, rally the, you know--it's OK to talk to the choir.

QUINTANILLA: That's exactly what happened during the Clinton years when Limbaugh rose to fame, alleging a liberal mainstream media and energizing Republicans.

Mr. MICHAEL HARRISON (Talkers Magazine Editor): People who were of the conservative mind-set felt that, 'Hey, the whole deck is stacked against us. This form of radio really is the only place we can go to get our point of view.'

QUINTANILLA: But liberals' attempts at radio, Mario Cuomo, Jerry Brown, haven't gone very far. Conservative talk-show host Michael Reagan says that's because liberals are too nuanced in their views to be provocative to listeners.

Mr. MICHAEL REAGAN: They listen to us because we're not boring. And liberal radio tends to be boring, if you will.

QUINTANILLA: Boring or not, Air America is a tiny start-up, sharing some cramped studios with an R&B station. And while Limbaugh is on hundreds of stations nationwide, Air America is only on six.

The network says it's aware of all of those challenges and insists this isn't a public service but a calculated move to make a profit.

Mr. MARK WALSH (Air America Radio CEO): You can drive a truck through the opportunity in this radio marketplace.

QUINTANILLA: Mark Walsh and Evan Cohen, the two Democrats running the business, say they can sustain losses for years.

Mr. EVAN COHEN (Air America Radio Chairman): Political talk radio for the last 25 years has been a very strong, viable economic business. And--and we're just tweaking the model a little bit.

QUINTANILLA: Giving Al Franken time to target the right. Air America just hopes somebody will be listening. Carl Quintanilla, NBC News, New York.

He suffers from the worst possible mental disease: he doesn't know that he doesn't know that he doesn't know.

Ever notice that when folks get up in years, especially those who have hit the jackpot financially become screaming liberals? Those on the lower part of the ladder become liberal because they need to protect the trough they feed from for their remaining years. Those on the upper end have already made their fortunes, and have them hidden in every imaginable tax shelter available so they don't have to worry about filling the trough.

Unfortunately, that leaves those of us in the middle with the responsibility of balancing the ladder while those on the rungs above us s%#t on us and those below us suck nourishment from our udders.

Brokow now needs to go off to a cozy mansion on the shore somewhere on the upper east coast and do wine sipping with Cronkite and leave running the world to us conservatives.

Liberals just "know" what conservatives do and think; he doesn't have to listen to Rush's show to know what goes on.

I once had to write a "letter to the editor" of my local newspaper because of an op-ed piece they published about Dr. Laura. The columnist said that on her radio show, Dr. Laura spouted hateful things about certain groups, and then invited her listeners to call in and say similar things.

Which proved that he had never listened to her show. She doesn't do a Limbaugh-type discussion show..she doesn't put up a subject and then invite a discussion on it. It's more of a "Dear Abby" format: she takes calls from people with family and relataionship problems, and gives advice on how to deal with them.

But to liberals, little details like that don't matter...she's on radio, so it's "talk radio" and she's just like Limbaugh (who, of course, is hateful.) They know what these conservatives do... don't confuse them with facts.

This may sound simplistic but...reacting to liberal bull$hit seen on TV News programming is a waste of time because of the layers of buffers they employ. On the other hand, reacting to conservative (and liberal) bull$hit on Radio News Programming is instantaneous. So it seems TV fits the liberal agenda (one way communication) while radio fits the conservative agenda (interactive). Quid pro quo.

Brokaw sounds like he's in a big tizzy over this. Nobody ever disagreed with him before, like they do on talk radio. Tsk.

Addendum: In my opinion, Liberal talk radio fails largely due to the fact they can't stand the smell of their own bull... but I digress.